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X Prize Foundation Announces Lunar Lander Competitors
Raver32 writes to tell us the X Prize Foundation has announced eight of the nine groups planning to compete in this year's Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge. "The ninth team requested to remain confidential, lending an air of controversy to the announcement. Space bloggers have surmised the ninth team is Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin, but sources told SPACE.com that information was wrong. Their confidentiality period ends 60 days before the start of the competition at which time the X Prize Foundation will announce the team's name."
Competition summary:
The Competition is divided into two levels. Level 1 requires a rocket to take off from a designated launch area, rocket up to 150 feet (50 meters) altitude, then hover for 90 seconds while landing precisely on a landing pad 100 meters away. The flight must then be repeated in reverse--and both flights, along with all of the necessary preparation for each, must take place within a two and a half hour period.
The more difficult course, Level 2, requires the rocket to hover for twice as long before landing precisely on a simulated lunar surface, packed with craters and boulders to mimic actual lunar terrain. The hover times are calculated so that the Level 2 mission closely simulates the power needed to perform the real lunar mission.
Just not officially, from their latest news;
"Full LLC1 flight
One June 2, we conducted a complete LLC 1 operational profile at the Oklahoma Spaceport. Everything went great. Representatives from AST and the X-Prize Cup were present. This was the first flight under experimental permit rules from a licensed spaceport. Both legs of the flight landed within a meter of the pad center, and our operation time was only an hour and a half."
Read the whole description here. It is full of all manner of technical goodies. In fact I can't wait for their next monthly update.
-- The morphemes of your disquisition are ascertainable, but they have eschewed an ambit of transpicuous exposition.
The ISS is inclined at 51.6 degrees relative to the equator (this was the lowest inclinations the Russians can get to from Balkanor without a costly plane-change maneuver)
For us, going to ISS is somewhat less efficient because we have to launch on a northerly azimuth out of the Cape instead of due east, which would maximize the 'boost' from the earth's rotation.
In short, the ISS is a research lab, not really a truck stop. Going there wastes propellant.
And while the CM and lander might be able to be designed to fit in the shuttle bay, the earth departure stage to push them to the moon is very large. Getting to lunar orbit in 9 hours is impressive for such a small vehicle, but it didn't have to enter lunar orbit, it just flew by. Slowing down to enter orbit takes a lot of propellant if you want to get there fast (have a high relative velocity)
"Open the pod by doors, Hal" > "I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave" sudo "Open the pod bay doors, Hal" > alright
It only takes one man to change the Wisdom of the Crowd to Tyranny of the Masses.
Invented in 1965 as one of the many random synthetic fibers DuPont tried. The goal was to replace steel in tires, although Kevlar didn't get used for that for some time. Not developed for the space program.
TeflonEgad, why do people believe this one? Teflon was invented accidentally in 1938. Non-stick teflon cookware was invented in 1954. Definitely not developed for the space program.
VelcroPatented in 1951. Not developed for the space program.
TangWent on sale in 1959. Not developed for the space program, although later popularized by it.
Astronaut icecreamThe only thing on your list actually invented for the space program. And it only flew on Apollo 7.
And if you think R&D will come up with stuff like this without the fire under their arses - that is the space program - you're mistaken.Teflon was an accident. Velcro came from a Swiss engineer taking walks with his dog. Kevlar and Tang came from R&D people trying to develop new products with only ordinary corporate "fire under their arses". Manned spaceflight is heavily overrated.
But then again, I could be wrong.